Godoku is similar to Sudoku, but uses letters instead of numbers. To give you a headstart, we provide you a mystery clue to fill in a complete row or column (if you choose to use it!). This week's mystery clue: Leslie Meier’s mysteries feature this Tinker’s Cove resident: (9 letters: C E L N O S T U Y).

Sunday, January 29, 2006

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books is changing hosting servers this coming week for First Edition Mysteries, your source for high quality and collectible mysteries. As a result of this change, it is likely that for a day or two the First Edition Mysteries website will be unavailable.

We're working to improve our service to you, and hope that this change is the first of several steps in that direction. More mysteries are being added each week to the online library of first editions available for sale to readers and collectors of mystery books.

Thank you for visiting our sites and we look forward to serving your mystery book needs.

Memory in Death by J. D. Robb debuts at the top of the mystery bestsellers at both Amazon.com and Barnes&Noble.com. This book has been a pre-order bestseller for several weeks. Lieutenant Eve Dallas walks a tightrope between her professional duties and her private demons in what Publishers Weekly says " ... is number 22 in a series that still manages to feel fresh."

Thursday, January 26, 2006

The Royal Gazette (Bermuda) ran an article recently on F. Paul Wilson, author of the Repairman Jack mystery series.

After golfing in Bermuda for a number of years, author F. Paul Wilson said the feel of Bermuda has changed and has become much more corporate.

However, this didn’t stop him from using Bermuda as a backdrop for Infernal, one of the latest Repairman Jack mysteries, released in November 2005 by Forge Books.

Infernal continues the adventures of Jack who is a "repairman" called upon to discreetly clean-up (in a knuckle-crunching way) various messes. This novel begins in New York City when Jack is reunited with his father only to lose him to a 9-11-like airport bombing. As Jack tries to solve the mystery of the bombing, he is unwillingly thrown back into contact with his estranged brother Tom, a crooked judge.

Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Earlier this month, Book Sense, the American Booksellers Association program, announced the February 2006 Book Sense Picks: 20 books that Dan Cullen, editor-in-chief of Book Sense Picks, called a "national staff picks presentation."

More than 1,200 independent bookstores will participate in the program, which Cullen said "was designed from the outset [to] give people flexibility and choice."

Sunday, January 22, 2006

If you dream of writing the great American novel or seeing your byline in newspapers and magazines, you’ll find advice, inspiration and empathy at the "Write on the Beach" conference Jan. 27-29, 2006, in Ocean Shores (WA).

The Daily World reports that renowned mystery writer J. A. Jance is headlining the fifth annual conference and will deliver the keynote address at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 28, 2006. Consequently, for the first time ever, "Write on the Beach" is opening the keynote lunch to the general public. Tickets are $30 each, while conference registration, including the keynote lunch, costs $175. Students under 18 can attend for $35.

For more information on the conference, read the complete Daily World article here or visit the Write on the Beach website.

Linda Fairstein's latest Alexandra Cooper legal mystery, Death Dance, debuts on the bestseller lists of Amazon.com and Barnes&Noble.com. Booklist states, "The latest Cooper delivers what has made this series so good: solid legal, procedural, and forensic detail surrounding an intriguing case."

Thursday, January 19, 2006

The Associated Press recently ran a profile on P. D. James, whose latest Adam Dalgleish mystery, The Lighthouse, has been a solid bestseller for several months.

When asked, what comes first, murder or motive, the answer is like the plots of her whodunits - never the obvious. "What usually comes first is the setting," James says. "I can have what I think is a strong response to the spirit of a place. I can be perhaps in an old house or a community of a people, a lonely stretch of beach and say this is where it happened."

This fascinating and informative profile has run in several online newspapers, and is available here from HeraldToday (Bradenton FL).

Wednesday, January 18, 2006

The TimesUnion (Albany NY) recently reported on local resident Kirby White who has written a mystery in an effort to help low-income families who can't afford to rent or buy a house. What prompted the publication of his book was a parking garage being built in the shadow of the state capitol building.

The author, who is 69 and a longtime housing advocate and writer, toiled for years as an underpaid community developer in downtown Albany. He began the mystery in 1998, but decided to publish last year when the state launched a real parking garage on Sheridan Avenue. The state's goal: Park cars for 1,500 state workers in one of Albany's most neglected neighborhoods. White's goal: Raise cash to help locals get decent housing.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Press Release: In the world of literary fiction, there is nothing more compelling than a mystery novel. Now, Court TV is partnering with the best-known, best-selling authors of the genre to tell some of the most compelling true crime stories of the recent past in Americas Crime Writers: Murder They Wrote. Award-winning authors Michael Connelly, James Ellroy, Faye Kellerman, Jonathan Kellerman and Lisa Scottoline have each selected a case that has long captivated or touched them in some way, and in each episode, the featured author will take viewers through the facts of that case. Through interviews with key players and commentary from the authors themselves, armchair detectives will have the opportunity to experience the story through the author's thoughts and insights. And the network is expanding on its relationship with leading bookseller Barnes & Noble with a planned multi-platform co-promotion, anticipated to include on-air, online and in-store elements.

Read the entire press release here in which each of the authors discusses their case.

The UCBerkeleyNews recently ran an interesting article describing the efforts of Bancroft Library cataloger Randal Brandt, a mystery aficionado with a passion for following book-related leads and sharing his discoveries.

With its storied history, signature landmarks, and abundant atmospheric fog, San Francisco has long been a favored stomping ground of literary sleuths. Just how much crime has bloodied this ground is apparent by visiting Golden Gate Mysteries, an annotated bibliography found on the Berkeley Library website and compiled by Brandt. There mystery fans will find the titles of hundreds of novels set in San Francisco and environs, featuring gumshoes as diverse as the names in a Frisco phone book and plots as twisted as Lombard Street.

Saturday, January 14, 2006

Press Release: Three Strikes You're Dead (June 2005), a Golden Age mystery written by Chicago author Robert Goldsborough of the famed Nero Wolfe novels, has reached a level of excellence within Echelon Press Publishing as it's overall best selling novel for 2005.

Three Strikes You're Dead takes fans back to 1938 Chicago, to a time when politics were king and baseball ruled. Dizzy Dean sat in the driver's seat of the Cubs' World Series ride, while scandal rocked the tight political community of the Windy City.

Goldsborough's trademark style of gritty detectives and vivid description are at a definite high in this novel of murder and mayhem. Deftly written dialogue and a unique and colorful cast of characters bring this classic-style mystery to life.

Lilian Jackson Braun's latest Jim Qwilleran mystery, The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell, has debuted at the top of the Barnes & Noble's mystery bestseller list and in third place at Amazon.com. Despite tepid reviews for this 28th entry in the series, her fans keep buying her books.

From the book's "About the Author" page, it states: "After reading countless pages, interviewing scholars and sitting and 'listening' to Mrs. Stanford speak to (the author), when asked if Mrs. Stanford was murdered, her response is long, circuitous and changes each time.'' So, does that mean Buckingham was chatting with Stanford's spirit? After all, Stanford herself was known to consort with mediums.

There is a lot to choose from, including the latest Arly Hanks mystery (Malpractice in Maggody by Joan Hess) and a new Charlotte La Rue mystery (Married to the Mop by Barbara Colley). Dana Stabenow has written a non-series thriller (Blindfold Game) and Jesse Kellerman, the son of mystery writers Faye and Jonathan Kellerman, has written his first mystery, Sunstroke.

Monday, January 09, 2006

Roberta Alexander, who write the It's a Mystery column, recently reviewed four mysteries (published in the Contra Costa Times online edition). Her opening comments are so very true: "A sense of place roots a character and a story in a way that strengthen them so that the reader can get the benefit of travel without the jet lag. Some mystery authors have a particular knack for creating characters and situations that you cannot imagine taking place anywhere else."

Sunday, January 08, 2006

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has been conducting a daily survey on its website asking visitors various questions about mystery books (and extensions thereof!). Each answer gives the visitor an entry into a monthly contest for a $25 gift card. Periodically results of the survey are posted in this blog.

Two questions were asked about what kind of mystery books you read and how you read them.

Thank you to all who have participated in the mystery book survey contest to date. The survey is expected to run through March 31, 2006, so there's plenty of time for you to cast your vote and get an entry into the monthly drawing for $25.

Several new books released this past week have hit the bestseller lists including the eighth Inspector Ian Rutledge mystery, A Long Shadow by Charles Todd, and the romantic thriller Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Andrea Kane.

The Manolo Matrix is the second book in Julie Kenner's Play.Win.Survive trilogy. The Givency Code, released in 2005, introduced the game and The Prada Paradox, expected to be released in 2007, will (presumably) provide answers to some obvious questions about the game (such as, who is behind it).

Synopsis (from the publisher): USA Today bestselling author of The Givenchy Code Julie Kenner reloads for her second novel of high-heeled thrills as another woman gets pulled into a mysterious world of extreme gaming where she must play or die.

Aspiring actress Jennifer Crane knows all about games -- the games girls play to get a guy; the games actresses play to land a part; and the good old game of credit-card roulette. (How else is a girl supposed to afford her shoes?) But she never expected to be playing a game with life-or-death consequences. Unable to successfully score an acting gig, she has, instead, been cast in the role of reluctant bodyguard to a real-life assassin's target -- a dashing FBI agent of all people! -- and must embark with him upon a scavenger hunt across Manhattan in search of the ultimate prize: survival. Before this, Jenn's definition of fighting dirty has been elbowing her way to the front of the line at a Manolo sample sale. Now, if she wants to stay alive, she's going to have to learn a few new uses for her stilettos ... and they ain't pretty.

Fast, flirty, and full of great footwear, The Manolo Matrix is another electrifying adventure in this breakout series for fashionistas who love a perfectly appointed mystery.

Review: The individual books of the best trilogies should be able to stand on their own, but The Manolo Matrix fails in this regard. The basis of the scavenger hunt (clues from Broadway plays) seems overly contrived, and the relationship between Jennifer and Devlin is never believable. The book is billed as an action-packed mystery and romantic comedy, but it is neither of these. It seems the author was simply trying to fill in the gap between the first and third books as quickly as possible with little regard to plot or character development.

Kenner is clearly taking advantage of the incredible publicity surrounding The Da Vinci Code (the title of the first book, The Givenchy Code, being an obvious clue) in penning this trilogy. But while The Da Vinci Code would never be classified as fine literature, it was at least fun to read. The Manolo Matrix is neither.

Special thanks to Book Trends for providing the ARC of The Manolo Matrix for this review.

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has introduced a new feature on its website: a weekly Mystery Godoku Puzzle. Godoku is similar to Sudoku, but uses letters instead of numbers. To give you a headstart, we give you a mystery book-related hint to fill in a complete row or column (if you choose to use it!)

Enjoy this new feature from the Hidden Staircase Mystery Books, and Thanks for visiting our website!

Monday, January 02, 2006

The Globe and Mail recently ran an article on the mystery of Nancy Drew. At 75, not only does Nancy Drew continue to make money, she's also the subject of scholarly essays that assess her social impact. These essays assess the historical and social impact of Nancy, and a bevy of academic events that started in the 1990s culminated in a massive open-to-the-public conference held this year in New York City.

Nancy Drew is still going strong. Though the original series of mysteries ended in 2003, Simon & Schuster, owner of the Nancy Drew brand, is keeping Carolyn Keene (the pseudonym under which the Nancy Drew stories have been written all these years) busy.

Simon & Schuster has rolled out two new series in the last two years. Nancy Drew Girl Detective (first-person Nancy) debuted in 2004 and even made The New York Times bestseller list.

This year, the Nancy Drew: Girl Detective Super Mystery series debuted, as well as a series of Nancy Drew graphic novels. And for the purists, the American history-oriented small press Applewood has been steadily re-issuing original unmodified Nancy Drew books complete with exact reproductions of covers and text (including the casual ethnic slurs that were cut out of the books as the times changed).

The Hidden Staircase Mystery Books has been conducting a daily survey on its website asking visitors various questions about mystery books (and extensions thereof!). Each answer gives the visitor an entry into a monthly contest for a $25 gift card. Periodically results of the survey are posted in this blog.Two questions were asked about how many mystery books you read in a month, and where you purchase your mystery books.Where do you purchase most of your mystery books?

Thank you to all who have participated in the mystery book survey contest to date. The survey is expected to run through March 31, 2006, so there's plenty of time for you to cast your vote and get an entry into the monthly drawing for $25.

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About Omnimystery News

Lance Wright owns and manages Omnimystery, a Family of Mystery Websites, which had its origin as Hidden Staircase Mystery Books in 1986. As the scope of the business expanded, first into book reviews — Mysterious Reviews — and later into information for and reviews of mystery and suspense television and film, all sites were consolidated under the Omnimystery brand in 2006.